


Doing All I Can Do To Be Close To You

by DefaltManifesto



Series: The Drabble Series [1]
Category: Final Fantasy X-2
Genre: Double Date, F/F, Fluff, Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-14
Updated: 2015-12-14
Packaged: 2018-05-06 14:51:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5421149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DefaltManifesto/pseuds/DefaltManifesto
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Double dates aren't really Paine's thing. But for Rikku, they can be.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Doing All I Can Do To Be Close To You

**Author's Note:**

> This is a gift fic for a friend who doesn't have an archive account so I can't tag her. I hope you like it! Comments are loved. Title taken from a song who's name I cannot find right now cuz it's some indie artist.

 

It takes Rikku two weeks to convince Paine to go on and double date with Yuna and Tidus. To Paine, it has all the hallmarks of going disastrously bad. After all, their track record every time they went to Luca something bad happened, but even with that, Paine finds it hard to say no to free Blitzball tickets.

When he gets out of the shower, an hour before she and Rikku are supposed to pick up Yuna and Tidus, her Lady Luck dressphere on the counter Her usual clothes are nowhere to be seen. She narrows her eyes and grabs a towel to cover herself before peeking her head out the door. Rikku is lounging on one of the three beds above the bar of the airship and she grins when she sees Paine.

"Rikku," Paine hisses. "I am not wearing that to a Blitzball game."

"We're going to a dance club after. You can't do proper dancing with all those belts," Rikku says, voice teasing.

"And I can't dance in a dress that tight either," Paine says. walking passed her to get her real clothes off the other bed.

Rikku pouts at her when she walks back to the bathroom, but Paine's gotten good at resisting those looks. She finishes drying off and pulls on her clothes so she can start in on her hair. Admittedly, she _does_ feel kind of bad for all the times she's turned down Rikku's ideas, especially since she knows ninety percent of the issue is her worry that Rikku will judge her. It's a stupid worry. In all the time Paine's known her, and in the year they've been dating, Rikku has done nothing to really make her feel judged.

Paine stows the Lady Luck dressphere away in her pocket and tries not to feel too nervous.

-.-

"I'm just saying, considering the bad technique of his defensemen, Wedge's save percentage isn't that bad this season," Tidus says. "The technique is there, it's just a team failure."

"Nope, I'd still put my money on Nimrook any day," Paine says as she steals a handful of candy from Rikku.

"I think you're both wrong," Yuna says, leaning forward on her knees to see around Tidus and giving Paine a small smile. "But that's because I have actual loyalty to the Besaid Aurochs."

Paine and Rikku laugh as Tidus splutters, searching for an excuse and trying to back track. It's easy to see in moments like these why Yuna was so desperate to get Tidus back. She and Yuna are different but Paine likes to think they both carry their baggage the same way; they try to hide it but it always spills out around the edges. But Rikku and Tidus...they help shoulder the burden with their laughter. They ease the nerves, the worry with their presence and support.

Paine reaches out to grab Rikku's hand, leaning on her shoulder as Rikku launches into a spirited defense of the plus/minus statistic. She knows she can add her voice to the debate. For now though, it's just nice to relax and let Rikku do the talking.

 

-.-

 

Paine hates clubs but she loves Rikku. She's not sure if she loves or hates Tidus' attempt at dancing. Yuna does her best to help him find some sense of rhythm, but Paine has a feeling he's a bit overwhelmed by the shortness of her Songstress skirt. He can't quite seem to keep his eyes off her but Yuna seems to revel in the attention. That's something about her Paine wishes they had in common. Or...maybe not. She and Rikku compliment each other just fine the way they are.

"Hey, I'll be right back," Paine says, letting go of Rikku's hips. "Bathroom."

"Okay," Rikku says with an easy smile.

Paine slips into one of the stalls and pulls out the Lady Luck dressphere. She's always seen them as tools or weapons, always seen them as tools or weapons, their circumstances never allowing her to be comfortable using them for fun the way Rikku and Yuna did. But now that she really thought about it, why not wear them for fun? It wasn't like fun was less important than all the battles they fought.

"Fuck it," she mutters and activates the dressphere.

Yuna and Tidus are wrapped around each other on the edge of the crowd when Paine gets out, swaying to a beat that definitely isn't the music. Paine scans the crowd and finds Rikku dancing alone, eyes closed as she moves. Rikku's always had a comfort with her body that Paine's envied. Dressed as she is now though, with no fiends in sight, Paine feels a bit of the bliss and ease she sees in Rikku's face.

Rikku's eyes open like she can feel Paine's eyes on her. She smiles when she catches sight of Paine then starts to hop up and down in short jumps when she realizes Paine has changed. Paine flushes but makes her way across the dance floor. Rikku kisses her quick and wraps her arms around Paine's hips. Paine raises her arms up, swaying to the music in Rikku's embrace. It's easier to lose herself in the music when she's got Rikku grounding her to the rest of the world.

           

-.-

 

They end the night on Besaid, a small fire warming them on the beach where the four of them sit. Rikku's thigh is warm against hers. Paine doesn't really pay attention to the conversation, more than happy to let the chatter wash over her and soak in their presence. It's not that she doesn't like their company. She loves all three of them, deeply and intensely, and in different ways.

That's what makes it so easy to be quiet and take in their company and happiness. They can all emote the things she has trouble emoting herself and really it's a matter of trust because if they did something wrong she'd have to stop them and explain. But she doesn't. They let her be free of that burden.

Rikku presses a wet and loud kiss to Paine's forehead. "Hey cutie. You look like you're about to fall asleep."

"Mmm...sorry."

"It's fine. I'll let Brother know to come get us," Rikku says.         

"We'll see you next week though, right?" Yuna asks.

Paine smiles. "Yeah. For sure. This was fun."


End file.
